OPINION

Ranging from TV, to radio, and even into every format of entertainment, the media is clearly known as “one of the most powerful entities on the planet” as said by Malcolm X From the time we are born to the time we return to the ground, we are always surrounded by the media. The most interesting part is how the different types of media, such as music, movies, video games, and so on affect many people. The big question is: Whether or not media effect on youth and culture is helpful or harmful.

When you turn on the television, your screen is filled with all sorts of advertisements, from food to clothing. While some are just plain disgusting (Ex. "This is Bob. Bob is doing well"), some of the commercials are actually inspiring. They are inspiring in ways that they help young people choose the career they might want, such as a doctor, teacher. Others help in the choice of attending a college one never knew existed. One inspirational ad was the Army’s “Be all that you can be,” which could be the extra push, the need to feel that they could accomplish their goals.

Another positive is based around the phenomena that is the Internet. Using the Internet, a person can access all sorts of different information, from www.nytimes.com, CNN.com, and others, changing the way we receive information. Morgan Barber, of the Global Kids Program in Wheatland, Wyoming says, “I think that digital media has become such a big part of my generations’ life that most people are like me. They take all of it for granted. I don’t honestly think life could go on today if all of the sudden, every bit of digital media that is in existence disappeared. We rely too heavily upon it.” How very true this is, for nearly every bit of information we get is usually from the media or from the Internet media.

On the other hand, media can have a negative effect on youth. One negative aspect is based on the portrayal of men and women in media. Women are usually portrayed as tall, young, thin equals beautiful. This has a detrimental affect of every day women, who try hard to live up to the expectations of these so-called “perfect women” that media depicts them to be. Some women would go as far as becoming anorexic, which can lead to serious medical complications.

More Reading. Media's Influence

It’s also negative for men as well, for in media they are portrayed as socially powerful and physically violent, which in turn, could lead to the assumption that this is how all men and boys should be in society and how they should act with their women and children. Media can also be used for skewing votes in favor of another politician vying for power. David S. Greenfield felt that “ Media has impacted many in a negative way. Language and violence are increasing on T.V. and most of America's youth watch T.V. and are influenced by what they grow up seeing." This is no surprise, seeing as the average time people watch television is 5 hours a day, which has been attributed to the growing obesity problems among today's youth. "When I was younger, when technology wasn’t as big as it is today, my parents would make me go outside and play til it was too dark to see what I was doing."Says Michelle Martin of the Global Kids program of Bob Jones High. Now parents don’t care what their children do and let them stay inside and play video games all day ‘till they get a headache from looking at the screen too long.”

With all the positive and negatives that go along with media, it tends to be a hard process of finding out if anything on any media format is worth believing anymore. Barry Joseph, the Global Kids' Online Leadership Director, has been preparing young people of diverse backgrounds to have the knowledge, skills, and experiences they need to succeed and to become global citizens and community leaders. Mr. Joseph felt “T.V. and music can be a positive influence on youth, by introducing them to new ideas and cultures. But their strongest impact doesn't kick in until youth learn to control the media they consume and produce their own. On the negative side, learning to be a passive media consumer, with no critical analysis of the media content, is one of the surest way to let others control your mind.” Media itself is a great power that can be used for either the right or wrong purposes. As Uncle Ben (Spider Man) would say, “With great power comes great responsibility.” I think we lost that somewhere down the road.